Senior Staff Attorney

The Senior Staff Attorney will be a critical member of the collaborative team working to advance CRWA’s environmental policy priorities, with the goal of improving environmental outcomes across the watershed and beyond for all residents. The Senior Staff Attorney will represent CRWA in administrative processes and legal proceedings at the local, state, and federal levels to advance CRWA’s mission of preserving, restoring, and enhancing the Charles River and its watershed. This is an exciting opportunity to serve as CRWA’s legal expert on a wide range of issues affecting the river and watershed—interacting with federal and state environmental regulators; weighing in on projects, permits, and other administrative decisions; and bringing litigation to enforce environmental laws. 

CRWA’s legal advocacy efforts are directly informed by our science and data-based programmatic work, necessitating close coordination between these areas of the organization. The Senior Staff Attorney will report to CRWA’s General Counsel and will work closely with staff throughout the organization.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Set and implement CRWA’s legal advocacy priorities in coordination with the General Counsel, Executive Director, and program staff
• Develop and advocate for CRWA’s positions in public, administrative, and judicial forums
• Devise and execute legal strategies to further CRWA’s advocacy priorities
• Conduct litigation and administrative appeals
• Review and comment on projects, permits, regulations, and policy initiatives affecting the Charles River and its watershed
• Ensure that CRWA’s legal advocacy work effectively integrates climate equity and environmental justice
• Provide legal advice and support for CRWA programs
• Engage and work in close coordination with traditional and nontraditional allies, build and support coalitions, and serve on task forces and other advisory bodies
• Engage in annual budgeting and planning for CRWA’s legal advocacy work
• Conduct work in accordance with CRWA’s diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives
• Recruit and manage legal interns
• Build out and engage CRWA’s pro bono and legal support network
• Advise and assist CRWA’s communications and development teams in communicating about CRWA’s legal advocacy efforts to the press, our members and supporters, and the public
• Provide support on additional projects as necessary
• Provide occasional grant support

QUALIFICATIONS

At CRWA, we recognize that someone may excel in this role even if they don’t have every attribute listed below. We also recognize that the skills needed in this position may be gained from a variety of personal, educational, employment, and volunteer experiences. We take all of this into account when reviewing applications and if you think you’d be a great fit for this role, we encourage you to apply!

To be successful in this role, a candidate will need significant legal experience (5+ years) in a range of settings, including litigation, administrative law, and policy.

Experience/familiarity with most or all of the following is strongly preferred:

• Federal Clean Water Act, Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act, Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act, Massachusetts Public Waterfront Act (Chapter 91), Massachusetts Water Management Act
• Climate resilience, stormwater pollution, environmental justice, green stormwater infrastructure, dam removal, combined sewer overflows, water conservation, drought, and flooding mitigation
• Environmental agencies such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP), as well as Massachusetts municipalities
• State and federal court proceedings, as well as proceedings before administrative appeal bodies (like MassDEP’s Office of Appeals and Dispute Resolution)

While the situation is still evolving, we anticipate a significant part of this role involving evaluation of and response to attempts to weaken or roll back federal clean water protections. Federal court environmental litigation experience is strongly preferred.

Other attributes of a successful candidate include:

• Experience managing your own caseload/portfolio of work
• Effective communication and advocacy skills (experience communicating with regulators and elected/appointed officials is a plus)
• Strong legal research and writing skills
• Excellent judgment and analytical skills
• Ability to work independently with minimal supervision, take initiative, and recommend strategic approaches
• Willingness to partner with and support staff across the organization
• Demonstrated high level of professionalism
• Commitment to CRWA’s mission
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and Google GSuite
• Able to work occasional evenings and weekends as needed

CRWA strives to attract and retain staff from a wide range of backgrounds, expertise, and perspectives and to foster a culture of belonging in which all feel valued and respected. If you need accommodation(s) to make the interview process more accessible, please let us know by emailing hiring@crwa.org.

CRWA is an Equal Opportunity Employer, and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital status, protected veteran status, disability, pregnancy (which includes pregnancy, childbirth, medical conditions related to pregnancy and childbirth, and breastfeeding), genetic information, or other bases protected by law.

Applicants must be authorized to work for any employer in the U.S. CRWA is unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa at this time.